Liam and Eoin Dunne are one of the three finalists of the Highest Achieving LambPlus Flock 2022. The Tubber flock, located in Tubber, Co. Offaly was first establised in 1995 and has gone from strength to strength since then, breeding some of the top Belclare sheep in the country. This was rewarded in 2019 and 2021 when their animals championed the Belclare Sheep Society Premier Sale. The Dunnes began performance recording with sheep Ireland in 2010 and lambed down 50 pedigree Belclare ewes in 2022. The flock has an average replacement value of €6.53 and an average Terminal Value of €1.51.
Liam accredits the success of the flock partly to careful selection of breeding animals used in the flock. Knockcroghery Gottfried is a great example of this. Purchased in 2021, he is in the top 2% on both the Terminal and Replacement indexes. Over 95% of Gottfried’s progeny on the farm rank as four or five star on the Replacement and/or Terminal index.
“It is worthwhile selecting high-index replacements when buying in stock as these animals consistently prove to be more profitable,” he says.
In 2021 the Tubber flock sold Tubber Godwyn to the CPT programme as a ram lamb – 98% of his progeny currently have four or five stars on the Replacement and/or Terminal indexes. This reflects how important linkage is to assess how the genetics of a flock can perform in various conditions.
The winners of the Highest Achieving LambPlus Flock 2022 will be announced by Sheep Ireland this week.